Well more likely then not you are not going to find what you are looking for especially with that budget in those stores you might but doubltfull..

Because of your Overseas locations I am unsure what to suggest to you but there are plenty of speaker manufacturers and to be honest you would have to make that choice if you think they sound good to you that is all that matters.. but with your budget I would look into some bookshelves speakers..

You can get some very good speakers from a couple place but unsure if they ship to your location?? Try HSU and SVS the also make some good subwoofers.. I believe they are located in North America not sure where they ship too but they have some really nice speakers..

Quote:

Originally Posted by pioneerisloud

Exactly. Considering real speakers cost quite a bit plus at minimum $200 for a receiver, it's usually easier to start with 2. Yes surround is nice, but it's not if it's muddy and tinny sounding.

In audio, honestly you do get what you pay for (up to a point).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robertdt

Thank you and that makes sense as a strategy given the price situation ... with a receiver would I still be able to hook the speakers to a Sound Blaster ZXR as well as HDMI for games?

and how that would compare with the Z-680s (or their modern equivalent, the Z906s, which cost about $100 more than the Onkyo system)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robertdt

Could you explain a little on how you would go about this? I have the Logitech Z-680s now and am interested in upgrading but really want to keep 5.1 surround (I like it a lot for movies and games, it makes a big difference to stereo IMO).

Do you basically buy two speakers plus a receiver, and then buy more speakers later? The receiver will just accept whichever speakers for each (5.1 say) input you assign?

Would I be able to still connect it to my Sound Blaster ZXR for games and music, and then Blu-ray HDMI for movies?